Goodreads asked Jo Barney:

How do you get inspired to write?

Jo Barney The old rule works for me in a slightly different way. I write about what I (almost) know, using my imagination to answer the question, "What if. . .?"
The question in this latest book is "What would do if I woke up on Christmas morning to find my husband lying dead beside me?" I create Edith's persona, (a little like mine), her disappointing life, (not like mine but perhaps somewhat my mother's story) spend time thinking about various older men I've known, choose one or two, create other secondary characters also similar to people around me, and in this case, a wonderful dog. Slowly, the story unfolds, retracts, recovers, becomes, I hope, true to life--at least, Edith's life.

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